Take Five With Tony Foster

AAJ Staff

Contributor since 1995

Various staff members.

Recent articles (1,149 total)

Published: November 30, 2009

Meet Tony Foster:
Currently based in Seattle, Washington, Tony Foster was born and raised in North Vancouver, BC, Canada. He received his initial musical training early on, in the form of classical piano lessons privately. In school bands, his main instrument became the trumpet. His studies on the trumpet continued until college, and it was not until this time that his focus changed to piano. Foster graduated from the University of British Columbia with a business degree, but eventually chose a career as a jazz pianist! A recipient of the 1998 Fraser MacPherson Scholarship, Foster eventually would perform with some jazz luminaries such as Ernestine Anderson, Sheila Jordan Sheila Jordan
b.1928
vocal , Red Holloway Red Holloway
1927 - 2012
saxophone , Jeff Hamilton Jeff Hamilton
b.1953
drums , Peter Washington Peter Washington

bass , and many others. May 2009 marks the release of jazz pianist and composer Tony Foster's debut trio recording entitled In Between Moods. The recording features Joe Poole on drums and Russell Botten on bass. The album showcases Foster's composing and arranging skills as well as tracks paying tribute to some of Foster's key influences including Oscar Peterson Oscar Peterson
1925 - 2007
piano and Ahmad Jamal Ahmad Jamal
b.1930
piano .

Instrument(s):
Piano/keyboard/hammond B-3.

Teachers and/or influences?
Clifford Brown Clifford Brown
1930 - 1956
trumpet , Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz Stan Getz
1927 - 1991
sax, tenor , Ray Brown Ray Brown
1926 - 2002
bass, acoustic , Ahmad Jamal, Monty Alexander Monty Alexander
b.1944
piano , McCoy Tyner McCoy Tyner
b.1938
piano , Herbie Hancock Herbie Hancock
b.1940
piano , Stevie Wonder, Erik Satie Erik Satie
, Cedar Walton Cedar Walton
b.1934
piano , Jimmy Smith Jimmy Smith
1925 - 2005
organ, Hammond B3 , Bill Evans Bill Evans
1929 - 1980
piano .

I knew I wanted to be a musician when...
I realized how insanely fun it was to improvise while playing trumpet in junior high school.

Your sound and approach to music:
I'm sold on powerful melodies...make it groove and you're getting somewhere...sometimes I think melody and rhythm can trump harmony...but, most great songs contain strong contributions from all 3 of these aspects...when I play, I try to play something fresh and new...react to who I'm playing with...where I'm playing...who we're playing for...I look for inspiration in all these areas.

Your teaching approach:
Don't really teach at the moment...as a student of this music, I barely have enough time to work on everything I want to with respect to my own playing!

Your dream band:
I'd love to work with bassist Rodney Whitaker Rodney Whitaker
b.1968
bass, acoustic , Christian McBride Christian McBride
b.1972
bass , Jerry Bergonzi Jerry Bergonzi
b.1947
saxophone , Jack DeJohnette Jack DeJohnette
b.1942
drums , John Clayton

Your favorite recording in your discography and why?
I'm happy with how my first release In Between Moods turned out, and the warm response it's been receiving, but I've got a lot of new material ready for the 2nd and 3rd releases already!—so, Look out!

The first Jazz album I bought was:
Kind of Blue, Miles Davis Miles Davis
1926 - 1991
trumpet

Did you know...
Went to a try-out for the Chicago White Sox when I was 16 as a pitcher.

CDs you are listening to now:
John Coltrane John Coltrane
1926 - 1967
saxophone - Standard Coltrane - Prestige
McCoy Tyner McCoy Tyner
b.1938
piano - Soliloquy - Blue Note
Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto Joao Gilberto
b.1931
vocal - The Best of Two Worlds - Columbia

Desert Island picks:
Ahmad Jamal - At The Pershing: But Not For Me - Chess
McCoy Tyner - The Real McCoy - Blue Note
Getz/Gilberto - Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto featuring Antonio Carlos Jobim - VERVE
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue - Blue Note

How would you describe the state of jazz today?
There are so so many amazing musicians today who are carrying on this great art-form...I think jazz is very healthy...it's interesting how jazz is changing along with the digital age and internet age...some magazines are becoming digital....but overall, jazz is healthy!

What are some of the essential requirements to keep jazz alive and growing?
Music which grabs a live audience...people need to feel it....be able to relate with where you're going in a particular song at a particular moment...not losing the audience in some sort of self-indulgence...playing as freaky or straight-ahead as I want, but still relating to the audience is key!

What is in the near future?
Currently working on a quartet with a wonderful Russian saxophonist named Dimitry Shapko...the project is inspired by the great "groovers" like Eddie Harris Eddie Harris
1934 - 1994
saxophone , Lou Donaldson Lou Donaldson
b.1926
saxophone ...the jazzy stuff in the 60s that made people move...I want to get to audiences on that level...for all the younger people who have no idea who Eddie Harris and Lou Donaldson are..